Dolls of Valen
by Hareta
Summary: How can you stand it, Rue? How can you fight your destiny?" Ruenis-centered. Unlike Rue, thousands of years of sleep did not manage to erase his memory, make him forget the duty he was created to fulfill.


Dolls of Valen: Prologue  
  
~*~  
  
"Rue...Rue...wake up, Rue..."  
  
He groaned, stubbornly turning his back to the persistent voice that kept on calling his name and trying to wake him up. The voice didn't stop though, only joined in its cause by a hand that shook his shoulder gently but with determination to pull him out of restful sleep into consciousness. He tried to ignore the hand as well but to no avail and little by little he came around up to the point that he could finally recognize the voice and the familiar warmth of the hand. He stirred, sitting up with a start and rubbing sleep from his eyes. He turned to his side where he was expected Claire to be, and there Claire was, kneeling beside him with a worried look on her fair face.   
  
"Claire? What's wrong?" he asked, stifling a yawn. Outside it was still dark, a few hours past midnight and before dawn in his reckoning. Many of his nights during the three years after...Ruecian's visit...had been spent outdoors and without sleep so he had become fairly good in telling time just by looking at the sky. "Why are you up?"  
  
"It's Ruenis. He's not here," she answered and then walked over to the wall where Arc Edge, Rue's weapon, leaned against, its blade glinting silver with the faint moonlight that streamed into the room. He watched silently as she peered at it fearfully and then turned back around to look at him with slight uncertainty in her eyes. "I have a bad feeling about this...I don't want you to go, but Ruenis..." She trailed off, took hold of the Arc Edge's scarlet handle with both hands and tried to hand him his blade. Tried, being that she barely managed to lift the weapon, probably with the frailty that comes after just having woken up.  
  
Rue immediately got to his feet and was by her side within a fraction of a second. "I'll look for him, Claire," he reassured her, taking the Arc Edge from her with one hand while the other meant to bring her comfort in the form of a gentle pat on the shoulder. "Get some rest and don't worry about us. We'll be back in less than an hour. See you in the morning." Giving her a brotherly hug, he put on his hat and walked out of the cottage.  
  
"Rue...be careful...both of you..."  
  
~*~  
  
"Ruenis!"  
  
As it was, his little brother wasn't that far from the cottage as the two of them have feared. Right outside actually, mere yards from the porch, but at a patch of land not visible to the inside through the windows. He was down on his knees on the ground, leaning over with his arms crossed across his chest. Rue immediately rushed over to his side. "Ruenis, are you alright? What are you doing out here this late?"  
  
Bloodshot eyes rose to meet his and, as different from each other as the two of them can appear, then and there Rue felt as if he was looking into a mirror, into his own eyes. He was slightly taller, his clothes' brown-and-green contrasting sharply with Ruenis' light blue-and-white in the moonlight, but they shared the same hair, the same eyes - the same features. Undeniably they were brothers, both...  
  
"How can you stand it, Rue? How can you fight your destiny?"  
  
...Dolls of Valen.  
  
"Ruenis?" he called uncertainly. Ruenis bent forward again, clutching at his chest and groaning in pain. Abandoning Arc Edge to the ground beside him, Rue stooped down and placed one of his arms around Ruenis' shaking form. "Ruenis, what's wrong?" Ruenis was whispering something back. Rue leaned down closer, trying to hear him.   
  
"Help me, brother..."  
  
For a minute there he thought he was the one being addressed, but looking at Ruenis' eyes told him differently. At that same moment he realized where they were and exactly what Ruenis had been looking at – Doll Master's...no...Ruecian's grave. With his familiar gesture of touching his forehead with his right hand Rue paid his respects and then shifted his attention back to his other brother. He gave a start, standing up. Ruenis' eyes were closed and his jewel, the little fragment of Dewprism he had on his own forehead, blazed, burning brighter with each passing second. There was a blinding flash of blue light and when Rue opened his eyes again, he saw the light coming from Ruenis' body and his brother stand from his curled position on the ground. Though with a silent gasp Rue realized that Ruenis was not standing, but floating in mid-air, his feet a few inches off the ground. Instinctively Rue reached for Arc Edge but stopped abruptly when Ruenis' light suddenly dimmed and vanished completely, his brother's body falling on top of him heavily.  
  
"Rue!"  
  
Rue turned his head and found Claire standing on the porch, staring at the two of them with wide eyes. She hurried down the steps and ran to them. "What happened?" she asked when she reached the two, sitting on the ground and taking Ruenis off of Rue gently, cradling his head on her lap. Rue wanted to reassure her that everything was okay, but couldn't. That would be lying and who knows how long Claire had been standing there and how much she had seen? He shook his head instead.  
  
Taking Arc Edge off the ground, he placed his faithful weapon onto his back and took Ruenis from Claire. She didn't say a word and the short trip back to the cottage was silent.   
  
Rue laid his brother down on his own mat and kneeled on the floor beside him, gazing at him thoughtfully. At length he looked up to find Claire looking down at both of them worriedly and he finally spoke:  
  
"I don't know, Claire, but I know it's anything but good..."  
  
~*~  
  
TBC  
  
~*~  
  
Author's notes: Sort of rushed. I'm suffering from writer's block but I believe I'll be getting no rest at all until I've posted a ToF fic so here it is, as crappy as it turned out to be. My first so facts may get jumbled up, okay? Reviews would be greatly appreciated! Happy New Year, everyone! -Idril  
  
Standard Disclaimers Applied. I don't own Threads of Fate, Characters, Elements, Game, Storyline, etc. 


End file.
